After hearing Bob Dylan play "Love Sick" from Time Out of Mind, his newest album, I immediately left the Garde hoping to buy a copy. Walmart was closed.

I would suffer rock-o-phile withdrawal symptoms until the following day when I walked into Norwichtown Mall's University Music and thanked them for selling me their last copy.

I wish I'd known I could've listened to the first minute of every single song at www.bobdylan.com. OK. So now you know.

Bob Dylan played 4 encores. Yes, I wanted 5. I think he's forgotten how good he used to be on a stratocaster, but his blues riffs on the old Gibson acoustic went straight to your gut. And his lyrics, well what can I say? I was there to spend some time with his lyrics. They bring you to another world. If you know the words they even hit you harder. If you don't, they hit you on your way home. Say he's one of the best songwriters alive right now. No one will argue. "Song and dance man," my foot. He's half poet, half prophet.

The Muse was definitely present that night.

One of these days and it won't be long
Going down in the valley and sing my song
I will sing it loud and sing it strong
Let the echo decide if I was right or wrong
- from "Silvio" by Bob Dylan and Robert Hunter, Columbia, 1998

I've been there. It felt like he was preaching right at me. But then doesn't it always? I think I'm "sick of love," just like him. He sang a lot of love songs that night for someone who likes to poke fun at that whole genre. But who was going to complain? I could listen to Bob Dylan sing the blues all night long. And I almost did.

"Cold Iron Bound" was difficult to understand. Then I remembered that when I saw him at Navy Relief Carnival in Groton a long while back, the first three or four songs were really garbled and dragging, then he seemed to come alive out of nowhere and put on the "show-of-your-life." He sure did that at the Garde, too. "Just Like A Woman" was its usual self. Except at one point he paused for emphasis and belted out a "me" that left smiles on everyone around me, including myself.

Some guy in the aisle started dancing to "Sylvio" as if we were at a Grateful Dead benefit for the Berkeley Free Clinic rather than a Bob Dylan concert. But now that I look back, who else has Robert Hunter collaborated with besides Dylan? I think "Ripple" was his. He worked with the Jerry Garcia band a lot, too. Then yesterday I gave myself an added treat by reading the liner notes to Time Out of Mind. Not only was Robert Hunter doing session work, but Bob Weir is in there as well. And Duke Robillard plays his old Gibson L5 on 4 or 5 cuts too. Wow. I try not to be a "homer," but he's from around Westerly, Rhode Island. Really near to where I grew up. I'm surprised Roomful of Blues didn't just hop up onstage all of a sudden or something.

"Desolation Row" and "Tangled Up In Blue" were their usual well-covered versions. Even as interpreted by Dylan's very jazzy bass player and the pedal steel virtuoso, too. What were their names? He announced them. I guess I was distracted by all the people yelling "Wallflowers, Wallflowers."

"Make You Feel My Love" was just plain weird. He wailed on a small synthesizer that was set to sound really similar to a huge Hammond with Leslies. "The guy's crooning another love song," I thought to myself. "Tears Of Rage?" "'Til I Fell In Love With You?" Bob, why don't you ask her back out again or something? "Highway 61 Revisited" was where I'd rather have chanted "Wallflowers," or at least "Jakob, Jakob."

I was going to yell "Freebird," but then I remembered I wasn't drunk. No one yelled for that or "Stairway To Heaven," which is strange for southern Connecticut. What can I say about all the encores besides...

Wow.

"Love Sick" rocked. I think his baritone gets better ever year. Or did I tell you that already?

Get to a music store before it closes, or go listen to those one-minute clips. And buy that album.

- Marco Capelli Frucht